63 Indictments in Brazil Tainted Meat Scandal

Brazil has indicted 63 people for their role in a corruption scheme within the nation’s Ministry of Agriculture. Drovers Cattle Network reports the charges allege federal auditors at meat processing facilities took bribes for years in exchange for fraudulent sanitary permits. Suspects in the case are charged with falsifying medical records and certificates, tampering with food products, conspiracy and corruption. Allegations also include selling spoiled meat and injecting water to sell poultry at higher prices. Police also reported that the producers under investigation used chemical ingredients, in quantities far above the legally permitted amount, to “disguise the physical aspect or smell of rotten meat.” Brazil is the world’s largest beef exporter, but after the investigation was announced, the nation saw exports drop to near zero within a week. Most export sales have resumed since. The U.S. Department of Agriculture last month said none of the slaughter or processing facilities implicated in the Brazilian scandal had shipped meat products to the United States.